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smelter

[smel-ter]
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noun
  1. a person or thing that smelts.
  2. a person who owns or works in a place where ores are smelted.
  3. a place where ores are smelted.

Origin of smelter

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at smelt1, -er1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for smelter

Historical Examples

  • I didn't see him for some years, when he showed up in Pueblo, where I was workin' in a smelter.

    The Vagrant Duke

    George Gibbs

  • "It's way up beyond the smelter," replied Mr. Everett lightly.

    In Blue Creek Caon

    Anna Chapin Ray

  • The smelter struggled with the steel manufacturer in the same way.

    The New Nation

    Frederic L. Paxson

  • The mine-owner struggled for his profits with the smelter who used his ore.

    The New Nation

    Frederic L. Paxson

  • The other one at the smelter ran for his horse and leaped on its back.

    Shaman

    Robert Shea

British Dictionary definitions for smelter

smelter

noun
  1. a person engaged in smelting
  2. Also called: smeltery (ˈsmɛltərɪ) an industrial plant in which smelting is carried out
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for smelter

n.

mid-15c., agent noun from smelt (v.).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper